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Birding at the Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area

On a bright and beautiful day in April I drove out to the Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area to see the birds. There are many, many more birds in winter. In April, most have migrated north to their nesting grounds where they will raise another generation. There are still many, many birds to see including red wing blackbirds, egrets, Swainson hawks, among others.

I made this little video to give you a taste:

The Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area is just off Interstate 80 at the E. Chiles Road exit (by the fruitstand). You may also recognize it as the place where Davis youth write messages in stone on the side of the levee.

You can download this map from the Yolo Basin Foundation’s website to find your way through the Bypass: http://www.yolobasin.org/images/100271%20YBF%20Map%20Hunting.pdf

There are picnic tables and port-a-potties at each of the parking lots. If you do picnic, please keep the refuge tidy.

There is no entry fee for enjoying the Wildlife Area, however, if you enjoy birding or picnicking, consider a donation to the Yolo Basin Foundation at http://www.yolobasin.org.

Also, you are in a floodplain that serves as the release valve for Sacramento’s flood protection. So if you are going to see the birds after a big storm or while it is raining, the area may be closed.